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Thursday, December 3, 2020

Chasseurs of the 6e Legere and a Windmill for Them to Shelter Within

 I learned a lot and picked up some pointers when playing the test game of Muskets and Marshals with Wellington Man.  One of the guiding principles of these rules by Ian Spencer is to keep it simple and not over-complicate unit organization.  To that end, players of Muskets and Marshals have battalions dedicated to a skirmish role, rather than peeling off companies of voltigeurs from full strength battalions.  What this does is standardize the size of the battalions as well as the "skirmish units".  For my larger 36 figure standard battalion size, skirmish units should be nine figures each, which represents roughly two companies of infantry (which coincides with the number of voltigeurs an infantry regiment of two battalions would throw forward).  For the French at Rolica I needed to have two legere battalions, one of which could be played in a close order formation or a skirmish formation.  To this end I modeled three battalions, 2 in close order and one that has smaller bases for skirmish duty.

Fortunately I already had 24 extra legere from the Tennant collection, so only needed to add 12 more.  The additional figures are Der Kriegspielers #12 - French legere battalion, 1812 firing.  The same figure is used for carabiniers, voltigeurs and chasseurs.  In this case I modeled the chasseurs as I already had the voltigeurs and carabiniers waiting.

In a bit of a cheat, I painted on a vest to appear as though a pre 1812 uniform was worn, to better match the voltigeurs and carabiniers. 

The DK figures are sometimes really quite crudely cast, and it took a lot of shaping and filing to get them in reasonable shape for painting.  Almost all had lost their bayonets, so I am hoping the super glue and varnish will create a strong enough bond to be durable with the replacement bayonets (plastic and metal).

Finally, apparently no old school wargame is complete without this plastic model kit of a windmill that shows up everywhere.  It is still available from Dapol in the the UK, along with the equally ubiquitous thatched cottage and village church:  https://www.dapol.co.uk/shop/model-accessories/self-assembly-oo-kits/c016-windmill-545


In the background you can see I have made some progress with the roads leading up into the hill beyond Rolica.  Despite having tested the battle a month ago, there are still a few scenic elements to complete, and a brigade of Portuguese, who may or may not show up during the course of the battle.  Still lots of fun to be had getting this battle ready for a local springtime debut.


16 comments:

  1. Wow, I love the detail! Sadly my hand is not steady enough to approach doing something this fine let alone painting in details that are not in the miniature itself! Bravo!

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  2. Thanks Gordie! I am fortunate enough to still have steady hands, but the ability to focus on something that small now requires a pair of reading glasses and a jeweler's magnifying hood! I really do love trying to make something beautiful out of these old figures. It can be done, but certainly not for the faint of heart. Even I had a sinking feeling of despair when I first started prepping these, but they turned out pretty good in the end. Next up is the Dutch Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard. I can only hope they turn out spiffy. I have always wanted to try my hand at the white uniforms, so we will see.

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  3. Look great - inspiring!
    I am working on my Scruby AWI project, and I'm hoping for a look something like this, but in much easier to paint 30mm!

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    1. Thanks! I will look forward to seeing your progress. I imagine the 30mm Scrubys are a great looking classic figure. I've never had any myself. Do you have a blog you could point us to so we can watch your progress?

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  4. I think you've got the art of 'spiffyness' nailed, David. Your Chasseurs are exquisite. I know from experience just how difficult these are, and you've carried it off magnificently.

    Best regards
    WM

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    1. Thanks WM. I keep drawing inspiration from you and others in this classic miniatures interest of ours. Seeing everyone else's fantastic painting keeps pushing me to work on my own technique, which has been fun, as I can see improvement in my skill.

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  5. Those chasseurs came out nicely and look really shiny - they must feel really slippery to the touch, I love that about shiny figures. I know it’s very O-S but for some reason I’ve never been a fan of the windmill. As for the roads I use brown packing tape so I can put them where needed, you can see it in the Prussian Expeditionary Force’s battle on The H-S site. One caveat being that I use it on green Lino so not sure if peeling it off will damage paint.

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    1. I do love the look and feel of the shiny figures! One really nice benefit is that with the extremely hard oil based varnish, I can treat them more like toys and don't have to worry too much about chipping the paint. It is well protected! The other thing I have discovered, is the utility of having a "drying area". I have a little window nook in the basement where I keep a small fan going. By placing the painted figures in front of it, even the oil varnish will be ready to handle in just a matter of hours instead of days.

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  6. These look splendid David...
    This is another of those French Napoleonic uniforms that I find very attractive...
    And the classic Airfix/Dapol buildings... what’s not to love.
    I’m looking forward to seeing the Dutch.

    All the best. Aly

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    1. Thanks Aly. The Dutch are going to be a real challenge. They will be my first 36 figure battalion completed in one go from start to finish (I will probably paint two 18 figure batches though). Not only that, but they are the Imperial Guard so they absolutely must be extraordinary! The figures themselves are quite wonky, so the first task will be to clean and shape them. If I can do that well I will breathe a big sigh of relief.

      I agree about the Dapol Models, they are just too nostalgic not to love, Rob's comment above notwithstanding. :)

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    2. Don't get me wrong, I like and have some Dapol kits myself and the thatched cottage is the very essence of Old School to me - why the windmill doesn't do it for me is a mystery - perhaps one bit me as a child...

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    3. In truth it is a pretty awkward looking model, but a quick search on the interwebs reveals quite a number of historic windmills in that style. Of course what I really need to be modeling is some Spanish style houses. I am hoping I can design some using the Linka system of moulds.

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  7. You have completed a very nice addition to your collection. Painting these old figures does require a different approach and style of painting compared to modern figures.

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    1. Agreed, but of course that is what makes it so rewarding!

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  8. I have come late to your marvellous blog which I found courtesy of a link on Lee's figure painting therapy blog. A magnificent display of classic metal figures all painted beautifully. I'll be 'following' regularly from now.
    Regards, James

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    1. Thanks James. Glad you found it of interest. I am looking forward to sharing a special announcement this weekend, so check back in soon!

      David

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